Driving pair take top spot at HOYS

A pair of driving horses took the honours in the Sankey Property Maintenance Ltd Harness Horse and Pony of the Year Championship at HOYS on Wednesday (6 October), making them the first pair to win the final in 15 years.

Richard Lanni’s chestnut geldings Symen and Vinney have won five championships already this season, with the coveted HOYS title their sixth.

“I’m always a bit concerned that the arena is a little tight for a pair of horses and might not suit them, but they were beautifully balanced and got better and better the more room they had into the final eight,” said Richard.

In the Cuddy Working Hunter Championship, Fiona Hirst and her own Dartans Barrack came top of 40 qualified combinations to take the honours.

The HOYS Working Hunter course is notoriously tricky, but Dartans Barrack made easy work of it to jump clear. They were pulled in second in the line-up before moving up to take the top prize after the ride and conformation juding.

The nine-year-old Irish Sport Horse also won the heavyweight workers at the Longines Royal International Horse Show earlier in the season.

In the Brineton Colne Mountain & Moorland Mini Pony of the Year, Sharon Wilson’s Thistledown Van-Der-Vaart, ridden by Hannah Wilson, took the title for the second year in a row. The win was made even more special by the fact it is Hannah’s last season competing in lead rein classes with the pony.

Reserve supreme went to the First Ridden winner, Glebedale Jubilee.

The prestigious Cuddy Supreme In-Hand Championship went to the six-year-old Welsh section B stallion, Moelgarnedd Stadross. Reserve championship went to the winner of the horse section, Martin Wood’s three-year-old bay gelding Ballycreen Rainbow Magic.

Image (c) 1st Class Images

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